Another Man Shot Dead In North End

UPDATE: video of Gaudett news briefing.

For a second consecutive day, a shooting has claimed a life in the North End. Police say a 30-year-old construction worker on Chopsey Hill Road near Pond Street was shot dead Thursday morning by a man now in custody who apparently had asked about a job. Police have arrested Gregory Weathers Jr, 33, for shooting Jose Araujo of Milford.

The victim worked for Burns Construction Company. Police officers near the scene radioed for assistance. The suspect was apprehended hiding behind a house in the neighborhood. Police recovered a handgun.

“Officers reacted immediately and pursued the suspect on foot,” said Police Chief Joseph Gaudett. “Officers converged the area and the suspect was quickly arrested hiding behind a house on Saunders Avenue. Police recovered a handgun.”

Detectives were interviewing the suspect at Police Headquarters this afternoon, according to police spokesman Bill Kaempffer. The suspect and victim did not appear to know each other.

Witnesses stated that the suspect approached a company foreman and inquired about a potential job. The foreman referred the individual to the company office to fill out an application. The suspect walked away but returned and fired several shots without provocation, striking a different employee who was working in a trench along the side of the road. He was pronounced dead at Saint Vincent’s Medical Center.

Two police officers were at the scene directing traffic and immediately chased the suspect on foot, calling in their locations to 911 operators. Patrol officers converged on the area and located the suspect hiding behind a house on Saunders Avenue, across the street from where he lives. Police recovered a handgun, and the suspect admitted to committing the shooting.